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There's nothing like a crisis to send people running back to the tried-and-true. That truism holds for cities: Las Vegas, in the midst of a tourism slump, is returning to its iconic tagline "What happens here, stays here." According to The Las Vegas Sun, the city is abandoning a gamble that didn't pay off: slogans that acknowledged the nation's rough economy ("Crazy times call for crazy fun"), which failed to entice tourists to return.

The slogan "certainly had staying power," says Mary Zalla, managing director of the Cincinnati and Chicago offices of branding company Landor & Associates. Zalla, who has worked on campaigns for such cities as Cincinnati and tourist spots such as the Biltmore Estate, says, "If it's a campaign or a line that can define what a city's promise is, it can be very compelling."

The "What happens here" campaign, created by R&R Partners, worked by selling Las Vegas as an experience unrivaled by the casinos sprouting up in other parts of the country. The original campaign included three TV spots that proved memorable and appealing to an important demographic: women. One showed a woman who had gotten into a limo in a sexy dress leaving in business attire, including hair tied back in a bun. The spots became so popular that the slogan was rated as one of the top all-time slogans by Digg Users last year, alongside such classics as "Pardon me, do you have any Grey Poupon?" and "got milk?"

Given the sticking power of the slogan, it may be a bet worth taking for Las Vegas.